Happy Canada Day!

While you are enjoying this Canada Day holiday, I encourage you to take a moment
to reflect on some of the things that we can be proud of as Canadians. For me, the
right to freedom of religion as enshrined in the Canadian Charter of Rights and
Freedoms is certainly one of them.

With rights come responsibilities. What are the responsibilities of societies and
communities that uphold the right to freedom of religion? Is the right to freedom of
religion meaningful in a social context that is not welcoming or inclusive of religious
diversity? Does freedom of religion ‘just happen,’ or are there conditions that need
to be actively created and sustained to ensure that freedom of religion exists in
practice?

Here are a few of the things that we have done make our community more
welcoming and inclusive of religious diversity:

• Our tour and outreach programs have provided over a hundred children and
families with unparalleled hands-on opportunities to learn about diverse faith
traditions in our community.
• Our workshop program has introduced over a hundred early childhood
educators to rationale and resources for honouring the diverse religious and
spiritual identities of children in their care. That number of children would be
well over a thousand.
• Our presentations at conferences have introduced our work to dozens of
community leaders from around the province.
• Our groundbreaking work with the Surrey Public Library and DiverseCity has
produced unique multifaith resources that are being used at a local level and
have drawn attention from across the country.

Have our efforts been noticed? Yes! Last year, our work received an “Innovative
Community Development” award from the Community Capacity Building Strategy.
Earlier this spring, the Surrey Foundation published a document titled: “Diverse
Threads: Creating a Stronger Community Fabric in Surrey.” The Surrey
Neighbouring Faiths Program receives special mention as example of a program
that creates “...understanding and the opportunity for meaningful dialogue...” in our
community (page 17). Last month, I accepted a Surrey Community Leader Award
that also honoured the work that each of you does (page 17).

Looking back, we certainly have a lot to be proud of. Before looking forward, let’s
take inventory of some of our assets:

• Supportive government policy. Even if government policy is not your ‘cup of

tea’, you may be interested to know that a few years ago our federal
government identified “religious diversity” as one of three key areas in
multicultural policy that need to be better understood and supported in the 21st
century. You can learn more about this work here.
• Respect in the community. I receive numerous positive compliments about
our work from many different sectors of our community. While it is not possible
 to pass on every single compliment, please know that you and your work are
certainly valued in the community of Surrey and beyond!
• Network of local relationships. Surely our most important asset is the
network of trusting relationships we have built. May we never lose sight of this.

Now let’s look ahead. The Surrey Foundation has embarked on a “Welcoming and
Inclusive Communities (WIC)” project. The WIC website is being launch today. There
are generous grants being offered to support four demonstration projects in the city
of Surrey. You can learn more about the demonstration projects here. I’m not an
expert in this sort of thing, but I’m pretty sure one of these projects has our name
on it.

If we are to make a go of it, however, we’ll have to work together. We’ll have to sit
down and see what ideas are out there, decide on what direction we want to move,
and make sure we have the necessary energy and resources.

I know that you are a talented and resourceful bunch! Please let me know if you
would like to be ‘kept in the loop’ and whether you have specific skills
that may be helpful as we proceed. I look forward to hearing your thoughts and
reflections.

A warm welcome to those who are receiving this newsletter for the first time! Here’s
an update on what’s been going on the past month:

Upcoming Events
Multifaith Documentary with Himar Productions
Things continue to fall into place with the documentary project with Himar
Productions. The title of the documentary will be: “Families and Faith: Raising
Children in a Multifaith Community.” You can read more about the project
here or through the link at the bottom of this page. Please let me know if you
would like to become more involved with this project at any level.
Upcoming Workshop for Simon Fraser University post baccalaureate
program
On July 9 the SNFP will be presenting a workshop for elementary school
teachers in a post baccalaureate program of the SFU Faculty of Education.
SNFP supporter and kindergarten teacher Sylvia Zeelenberg has also
arranged for the class to tour a number of local faith communities as part of
the program.
Fall 2010 “Early Explorers” Tours
The Fall 2010 “Early Explorers” Tours will begin with an orientation session on
September 19, 2010. The group is almost full, so if you know of anyone who
might be interested in participating, please have them register ASAP. This
series of tours will also be filmed for the documentary with Himar
Productions, so if you’re looking for your “15 minutes of fame,” here is your
chance! Please also let me know if you are interested in helping out in any
way.
Surrey Kids Conference
The Surrey Kids Conference is an increasingly popular two day event for
children aged 6-12 in Surrey. The event will take place November 20 and 21,
2010. Planning has begun for the conference, and the SNFP has been
 approached to host a children’s workshop. Please let me know if you are
interested in participating in the development and presentation of this
workshop. There are a number of talented people who have already
expressed tentative interest, so you will be working with a capable and
resourceful group!

Updates
Surrey Foundation grants
The Surrey Foundation recently announced a total of $92,000 in funding for
four demonstration projects aimed at increasing Surrey's capacity to be an
inclusive community and/or promote appreciation of diversity & intercultural
understanding. Sireen El-Nashar, the SNFP representative to the Surrey
Foundation, attended the orientation meeting on June 17. Thank you Sireen!
Please let me know if you have any questions about this exciting opportunity.
Early Childhood Educator Workshop
SNFP presented two workshops to early childhood educators in the month of
June. The first workshop was to the Westcoast Childcare Resource and
Referral in Vancouver, the second to the Delta Early Childhood Development
Committee. The workshop is titled “Honouring the Religious and Spiritual
Identities of Children in Early Childhood Education.” The workshop also
functions to promote the SNFP and the Multifaith Storytelling Kits. A copy of
the workbook can be accessed via the link at the bottom of this email.
The Centre for Child Honouring - Multifaith Proclamation from Raffi
Religious and spiritual leaders can help in eliminating all forms of violence
against children. It's time for faith leaders to stand as one in strong support
of the world's children. All citizens and faith leaders are urged to become a
signatory. Please take a moment to sign this proclamation and forward it to
your faith leader.

Community events
An Evening of Wisdom & Meditation with His Holiness Sri Sri Ravi Shankar
Spend an evening in the Presence of His Holiness Sri Sri Ravi Shankar, a
world-renowned humanitarian and spiritual teacher of unusual depth,
simplicity and humility. He has brought millions of people throughout the
world a deeper understanding of their own being and an inner
transformation, which has profoundly affected their lives. Don’t miss this
evening of wisdom, music and meditation! July 9th @ 7pm at St. Andrew's
Wesley Church, Vancouver, BC. For more information and tickets please visit
www.srisrivancouver.ca or call 604-339-0179

Ongoing announcements
Join us on Facebook!
Join our Facebook group and receive timely updates on the SNFP and other
multifaith events in the community. If you are not already on Facebook, you
will need to provide an email address and password to join. It is quite
painless. This newsletter will continue to provide more in-depth, monthly
updates to your inbox.
As always, I invite your comments and feedback on any aspect of the program. If
you would like to get more involved, please let me know what your interests are
and we can explore some ideas together.
In peace,
David Dalley
(604) 502-8661
davidanderin@dalley.ca

“Comforted by how much we share, we’re able to delight in our differences.”

- Raffi, from “A Covenant for Honouring Children”

Attached:
Documetary description
ECE Workbook